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Exceedingly Rare 1908 Johnson vs. Burns Fight Program & Ribbons....
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Sold on Apr 24, 2009 for:
$4,481.25
Bid Source: HA.com/Live bidder
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Description
Exceedingly Rare 1908 Johnson vs. Burns Fight Program & Ribbons. From a consignor in the Land Down Under, and making its first appearance north of the equator, is one of just a tiny handful of known surviving examples of the Jack Johnson vs. Tommy Burns fight program, issued at The Stadium in Sydney, Australia on the day after Christmas, 1908. The century that has passed since its issue, and the fact that any lost examples that might still exist remain half a world away from American collectors, has made this program marking Johnson's assumption of the Heavyweight title a true holy grail piece for advanced hobbyists.It was a match that almost didn't happen. Johnson was forced to chase Tommy Burns all over the world, taunting him in the press, before the Canadian pugilist consented to meet him in the ring. The fight lasted fourteen rounds before police stepped into the ring to stop the contest. The title was awarded to Johnson on a referee's decision as a technical knockout, and though Johnson had had several chances to finish the fight, he chose instead to hold Burns up so as to prolong the beating. Johnson mocked both Burns and his ringside crew as he went about his dominating performance, further fanning the flames of racial animosity that made him the most hated Champion in boxing history. From this moment until Jess Willard's victory over Johnson in 1915, the white boxing world cried out for a "Great White Hope" to remove him from his position as king of the boxing world, suffering his reign as a personal insult.
The offered program is the finest that has yet surfaced, remaining tightly bound with no loose or missing pages, and no tearing or significant staining. The foxing of the front cover and tiny chips to a single corner on the front and on the back cover represent the most significant condition issues. Any instances of toning, or one or two half-inch tears to the interior pages, remain in the border areas and are so minor so as to barely merit a mention. Again, we must stress that a finer example almost certainly does not exist.
Even more remarkable than the survival of the program is that of the included pair of satin ribbons (1.75x4") likewise issued at the fight, each announcing a combatant's name in bold golden block lettering above the words "The Champion." These survive in imperfect condition, as our catalog imagery should indicate, but are, to the best of our knowledge, the only known examples. As a pre-war boxing lot, this may be the most exciting offering of 2009, and will provide one advanced collector a chance to join one of the most elite brotherhoods in the hobby through ownership.
Auction Info
2009 April Signature Vintage Sports Memorabilia Auction #714 (go to Auction Home page)
Auction Dates
April, 2009
23rd-24th
Thursday-Friday
Bids + Registered Phone Bidders: 8
Lot Tracking Activity: N/A
Page Views: 5,087
Buyer's Premium per Lot:
19.5% of the successful bid per lot.
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